For Mike and Kim Carpenter, legacy giving is more than an act of gratitude: It’s an opportunity to further God’s kingdom for generations to come.
When Mike and Kim Carpenter made the trip from Columbus to Cincinnati for a marriage conference in 1987, they didn’t expect the three-day-long event to spark a lifelong involvement in a then-new Christian school 100 miles from home. But a divine encounter with some of Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s Founding Families—and a God-orchestrated job transfer to the Queen City—set in motion the Carpenters’ decades-deep history with CHCA.
“We made the decision before we even had children that we would try to send our kids to a Christian school,” says Mike. “It was always in our game plan. At CHCA, we could see the whole legacy and the foundation they were building around faith. It was a huge deal to us.”
With two daughters and a faith rooted in Christ, the Carpenters saw CHCA as more than a school for their growing kids. It became a community of invested parents and close friends that reflected their values and offered opportunities that impacted the entire family.
“Mike became involved and instrumental in the swimming program, and I chaired the Fine Arts Festival for two or three years alongside Mona,” Kim says. The couple’s eldest, Kelley, found her place in CHCA Arts while their youngest, Kasey, smashed school and state records as part of CHCA Swimming.
Though their years as CHCA parents are in the past, the Carpenters have found new ways to continue their relationship with the school as CHCA grandparents and legacy supporters.
“It’s the Christian education and the foundation that all of these kids are exposed to,” says Kim of why she and Mike give to CHCA. “To be able to impact anybody’s life with a gift—we just want to do that in whatever way we can.”
For Today and Tomorrow
Through including CHCA in their estate plan, the Carpenters are not only ensuring the longevity of a Christ-centered education for their grandchildren and others, but they’re continuing the legacy of generosity that fueled the founding of the school.
“It was 10 or 12 families that got together and said, ‘This is what we want for our kids,’” says Mike. “And our kids benefited from that. I feel a responsibility to add to that for the next generation. We established CHCA in our retirement planning and wills because we want to make sure our money is going to the right places.”
Including CHCA in their estate plan, the couple says, was easy: After a will is established, an attorney handles any revisions and dictates. As assets change, adjusting gifts is as simple as a phone call. Plus, by including CHCA in their estate planning now, the Carpenters have the peace of knowing how their generosity will be used past their lifetime—and a glimpse of the legacy they’ll leave behind.
“It reaches beyond whatever we can imagine because it’s Christ-centered,” says Kim. “I was listening to a Casting Crowns song the other day that talks about when you remember me, I want you to remember Jesus. That’s what I hope—that I would leave something in my grandkids’ and great grandkids’ minds that would, at some point in their lives, refer back to Jesus. That’s kind of how my grandparents were for me, and it made a difference.”
“No one knows how much time we are given on this earth,” says Mike. “Our names may not be remembered. But if we can make sure that what we believe in will someday be important to others, that’s the most important thing. What we give to the school will hopefully be remembered in the growth of students to come.”
